Shadow Cantios Ecology
Shadow Cantios is a subspecies of Cantios. Body Biology Has the appearance and body of a Flying Wyvern like Rathalos. Its bone structure and muscles are able to change to become able to move through water, or become more bulky and take a Pseudo Flying Wyvern like appearance. Its wings can bend to become fins, along with a pair of gills next to its throat that allow water filtering. The wings can also shrink in the webbing and bulk in the arms, causing its wing talons to swell and become hands like that of a Nargacuga's. The tail acts like a mace on land, which Shadow Cantios uses to smash through tough hides or the occasional rock. In water it becomes a fin, propelling it through the water. The body of the Shadow Cantios is quite light, but has powerful muscles to protect against G-Force, allowing it to travel at extreme speeds in the air easily without harm. It's body also contains a lethal poison, its claws being naturally coated with it. If angered the poison will become more toxic, causing the zigzag patterns on its body to glow purple along with its claws and talons. These patterns are actually special organs which passes around poison when needed. An example of the organs being used is them transferring a wave of poison to Shadow Cantioses mouth to turn its usually tranquillising Undrea breath into a lethal killer. Shadow Cantios can controls said organs manually, as in the poison breath only being used on its own command. Undrea The Undrea from Shadow Cantios is created from its stomach acid, substances in its lungs and dragon element which it cannot use purely. It affects the brain and pain sensors of whoever it affects, making them unaware of their wounds and effects instincts to become evasive or protect those wounded parts, leaving them to a potential fatal strike. Cantios can make many different variants of this breath raging from a simple stream, balls, wave form, mist clouds and in its most deadly version a tornado of it that is more than enough to kill an enemy rather than affect it with the substance. Some of the strongest individuals can use the temperate and surrounding air or water to amplify its effect to the strongest any regular Cantios can handle. Said power is only used rarely and a direct hit by it is almost sure to end a heated battle to Shadow Cantioses favour. Since Shadow Cantios uses its lungs when using Undrea it cannot breathe in while using it, making it use the weapon when needed. In use of its most powerful attacks meant for an exceptional foe, it will have to have a recovery time from using all that air and to restore its substances to make it. Should one be stupid or crazy enough to abuse the breath, the lack of air can potentially kill the Shadow Cantios. Although they are naturally immune to it, should two Shadow Cantios fight, wounds sustained can lead to one becoming affected by the others Undrea, and result in the same affected movements and behaviour as any other monster. The Shadow Cantios has a unique ability to use poisons in its body to toxicify its Undrea Breath, and unlike the standard version, it is made to kill. Once this variant gets into the bloodstream of victims it will ravage the body, not just in nerves, organs, blood cells and muscle attacked, with the victim feeling the pain in its entirety. Effects of this involve violent shaking, coughing up blood, red eyes, veins bulging, tensed muscles and extreme pain. Most cases of it not being treated result in death on its own without Shadow Cantioes interference. A Sheara Berry is said to not be enough to cure this, but an antidote will also be needed to use the poison aspect of the infection, in other ways if an antidote is used the infection will become that of standard Undrea. In the Food Chain Shadow Cantios will eat whatever meat it gets its talons on. It has been seen eating herbivores like Aptonoth, Apceros, Epioth, Rhenoplos, Kelbi, Anteka, Popo, and fish. It sometimes will eat more dangerous monsters like the Larinoth, Bullfango, Maccao, Jaggi, Scofisl, Velociprey, and sometimes some wyverns like Yian Kut-Ku, Quropeco, Dromes and carapaceons like the Daimyo Hermitaur. In occasions if a Shadow Cantios is especially hungry it will eat a monster that tried to kill it. They have even been known to kill and eat the standard Cantios should they wonder at night. Despite their high status they can fall victim to other Apex predators like the Deviljho, Rajang, Teostra, Kushala Daora, Deviants and in the Sherin Peaks they have been confirmed to have been eaten by the Dasamios. They have also been known to in rare cases even cannibalise each other if dire enough. Hunting Style Shadow Cantios have a very different style of hunting than its normal cousins. The wyverns hide in absolute darkness, and then strike at the perfect moment that often kills prey in a single hit instantly. Should they survive or try to escape they waste no time in cutting them down with their talons and fangs. They a process a mace shaped tail to stun with a strike often aimed at the head. During combat the Shadow Cantios will transfer the poison it has into its special veins and make them glow ominously. This also poisons its claws if they haven't already and makes it able to use a deadly variant of its Undrea Breath that is made to kill, not leave one open. The poisonous breath isn't the only breath it has, it also has the ability to use the standard Undrea. With a direct hit from this breath its prey/enemy will become numb and their behaviour will often change. Many instances of the behaviour change make them unaware of their injuries and only blindly attack without any sense of evasion or blocking. Once infected by Undrea most hunts quickly end with Shadow Cantios striking an already wounded part to rupture an internal organ of its prey and kill it. Since Shadow Cantios can fight in sea and air as well as land its fighting styles change depending on it too. In the air it attacks using its wings and talons to cut prey down before descending down on them and finishing them off. From this style of attack prey are most likely prone to being inflicted by Undrea breath. Shadow Cantios often fly to their preys side before they glide or attack with their talons. This style of attack is the one Shadow Cantios uses well the most, with its speedy attacks and movements being rivalled by a bare few. In the seas Shadow Cantios mainly uses its fangs and tail to shred and smash prey to pieces. This attack pattern has been compared by hunters to be that like the Plesioth, which is a Piscine Wyvern. In their wings is a unique poison in the form of a black smog. It isn't used much, but if there comes an opportunity to use it, they will. In the form of wind they expel it from the membrane in the wings and push it towards enemies with a flap. When this poison effects the victim they will lose their ability to see for a notable amount of time, leaving them at a serious disadvantage should they only rely on sight to fight. A noted often fact is that Shadow Cantioes never hunt in daytime. This is an evolutionary trait that passed onto it after changing from its ancestors. A lot of Shadow Cantioes ablities become useless in day, making it essential they don't run into any trouble during this time and find a spot to sleep. Life Cycle Shadow Cantios begin as eggs laid in any environment, even in water. The nest is surrounded by Undrea, giving would be predators the appearance that they are rotten, and any who persist get infected and then likely killed by the parent, who stays with the eggs until they hatch. The new born Shadow Cantios has a unique appearance that differs depending on the environment it hatched in, but the other abilities to deal with the other environments develop over time. Food is mainly supplied by the parent Shadow Cantios, during the first few weeks. Should the parent dies of age or of other causes while in the presence of the young, they will eventually eat it out of hunger, confirming that the wyverns can be cannibals. During the next six months it develops and learns to interact in other environments. Those that fail, or have a disability that prevents its adaptation to other environments, very often die, abandoned by the parent or flat out killed by its siblings. It is believed an imperfect Shadow Cantios exists, but there has been no confirmed sighting. If the parent contracts The Frenzy at any stage this will be passed onto its young. They might even become Apex, resulting in the deaths of the parent and all its siblings. Those who do survive grow into fully fledged Shadow Cantios' able to live on their own. An aged Shadow Cantios can be told from scales so black there's hardly any way of seeing where they connect, well developed wings, a roar that will send all but the strongest running in fear immediately upon hearing it without fail, sharper talons and fangs and poison that is fatal if not treated. Of course Shadow Cantios will eventually die, from age, effects of The Frenzy, killed by other monsters or slain by hunters as part of a quest contract. Evolution Shadow Cantios evolved from an ancestor unknown which didn't lose its fish abilities when moving to land because of unique genes. It later evolved wings, becoming a Flying Wyvern and through new muscle stretching could change it back to a land monster. The Undrea ability began as a poison, and through changes in its lungs and other chemical factors it fused to become the iconic Undrea breath. In Shadow Cantioes case unlike the Brown Cantios, it kept the poisons and still continues to use them in its current form. Shadow Cantios differs from the evolution of Brown Cantios for many reasons. These ones evolved nocturnal instincts, being awake only in night and sleeping in the day. From this stance as they grew into predators they developed brand new tactics. Rather than head on attack prey, it would use its scales as camouflage in darkness and then strike out as they are unaware. As they evolved even more they would begin using more and more ways to ambush and now scare away enemies with a unique roar that is the result of differently formed lungs and vocal cords. Category:Monster Ecologies